Chapter 6

Isaac's hands tightened around the armrests of his wheelchair, drawing on nearly all his strength before he managed to suppress the wave of self-loathing inside him. When he finally spoke, his voice was steady and cold. "Just as you thought, I have every condition that comes with being a cripple."

The meaning in his words was unmistakable, and Verena grasped it instantly.

When she met his gaze, it felt as though a shadow had settled over his eyes.

An ache spread through her chest without warning. It was hard to believe that the once proud and refined heir of the Bennett family had come to this.

His refusal had nothing to do with rejecting an arranged marriage-it was rooted in a deep and consuming sense of inferiority.

Without thinking, she closed her fingers around his hand. "Isaac, don't turn me away."

Once,those words had belonged to him. Now, she was the one saying them.

The resolve in her gaze was fierce, so fierce it felt like heat on his skin.

Since the day of the accident, he had shut the door on every show of concern, unwilling to endure the pity that always followed.

No one he had pushed away had ever insisted on staying-not even his mother.

Something he couldn't name moved through him, and he found himself saying, "Alright."

Her smile broke across her face in a way that was soft yet luminous. "Then it's settled."

For a moment, he let himself get lost in that smile, and the reason he had requested a private talk with her slipped from his mind entirely.

It struck him then that this woman he barely knew had already managed to pull down the barriers he held against everyone else.

Matters he would stubbornly stand his ground on with anyone else seemed to bend whenever she was involved, and somehow those moments had turned into talks of engagement and marriage. His plan had been to convince her to walk away from the arrangement, yet this was where they had ended up.

...

The conversation between Verena and Isaac about the marriage lasted less than twenty minutes before they reached a decision.

When the meeting concluded, both families went their separate ways.

The moment Laura sat down in the car, the polite smile she had been wearing crumbled.

Thinkingback to Danica's subtle hints during the meeting made her cheeks burn with embarrassment.

Her patience finally gave way, and she scolded Verena, "You shameless girl! Did you forget what I told you?I said you should tell people you graduated from Acorith College of Medicine, but you went and said Pine Hill University instead. Do you honestly have no idea how to tell a more convincing lie?"

Verena cut her off mid-sentence. "I told the truth."

Her eyes stayed steady, without the slightest trace of guilt for being called out.

For a split second, Laura almost believed her. But she knew the truth-Verena had never attended college and only held a high school diploma.

Watching her daughter stubbornly stand by her claim only fueled Laura's anger and contempt. To her, it was proof that rural life had left Verena with an unruly and brazen nature.

"Kaia spent three years working hard to get into Acorith College of Medicine. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to enter a top university? Especially one like Pine Hill University." Laura's voice sharpened as she shot Verena a sidelong-glance. "Now look at the mess you've made. You told such a huge lie you can't even maintain it. Didn't you see Danica's reaction when you claimed Pine Hill University? Who would believe something so ridiculous? You've dragged the Willis family's name through the mud with your constant lying!"

Verena felt no surprise at Laura's opinion. To Laura, she would always be nothing more than an uneducated,ill-mannered girl from the remote countryside. A mother who never even tried to understand her child had already failed in that role.

When Laura brought up Kaia as a comparison, Verena could only find it amusing. Kaia had spent three years working hard to get into the college that now wanted to invite Verena as a lecturer. If Laura knew that, her temper would likely explode.

Verena responded sharply, "You think calling myself a Pine Hill University graduate is a lie, but claiming I went to Acorith College of Medicine isn't?"

As she looked at her mother, whatever expectations she had once held for her vanished completely. Her voice turned sharp and cold. "Don't forget, you're the one who taught me how to lie. You're the compulsive liar here,not me."

Laura froze, caught off guard by the bluntness of the retort.

She drew in a breath to scold Verena for her disrespect, but Verena cut her off. "I don't care to hear any more. You wanted a marriage arranged with the Bennett family. Now it's done. You're satisfied, I'm satisfied,and there's nothing else to talk about."

The car pulled up to the Willis Villa just then, and Verena stepped out without giving Laura a chance to reply.She headed straight for the front gates.

Watching her daughter's back disappear, Laura's irritation swelled to its peak. To her, Verena was nothing but an ignorant, uncultured hick with no sense of manners. Such defiance toward her own mother had to have been encouraged by that meddlesome Shawna in the backward place she came from.

If Isaac hadn't been crippled in both legs, and if Laura hadn't wanted to protect Kaia's future happiness,she would never have agreed to bring Verena back from such a dreadful place. In her mind, only the children raised under her own roof counted as real family. The Willis Villa spanned four floors. The first was the living room, the second held the family's bedrooms,the third was used for storage, and the fourth was reserved for guests.

The whole thing bordered on ridiculous. There were only five people in the family, yet Verena's room had been tucked away at the far end of the third floor, right beside the storage closet.

On the second floor, the spare room had been set aside solely as Kaia's study.

If not for the arranged marriage, there likely would have been no intention to bring Verena back at all.

For that reason, Laura's behavor came as no surprise to Verena, though it still left her with a bitterness she couldn't quite name.

As she began making her way upstairs, the sound of footsteps echoed from above.

When she lifted her gaze, a tall young man was descending the staircase. He wore a relaxed hip-hop outfit,and though his face held traces of youth, it was undeniably handsome.

Verena had never seen him before, but the easy manner in his stride and his casual clothing made it obvious. This was her younger brother, Luka Willis.

At the same time Verena spotted him, Luka's eyes also fell on her.

Her hair was tied back in a simple ponytail, and her clothes were plain, yet her beauty was striking.In that instant, Luka knew without doubt she was his eldest sister.

He had once heard through the chatter in the wealthy young people's group chat that Verena was supposedly unattractive, a rumor that had left him feeling embarrassed.

Now, seeing her in person, he could only conclude those claims were pure fantasy.

Her finely shaped features were bare of makeup, yet her face still radiated a quiet elegance, and there was an undeniable cool detachment in her eyes.

That same glint in her gaze mirrored something in his own, leaving Luka certain she was family. He found himself wondering who had started the rumor about Verena being unattractive in the first place. At the start, Luka had no particular feelings toward Verena, but neither did he oppose her. Still, the fact that she had caused trouble for his cherished sister, Kaia, left a mark.

With a sharp little scoff, Luka dismissed the thought. Beauty meant nothing if she had already offended Kaia.